One of the most commonly used traps for mice and rats includes a flat rectangular wooden base with a pivotally mounted spring loaded bail which is held in a loaded condition by a wire rod engaged under a tripping device that holds the trap bait so that the bail is sprung when the bait is disturbed.
Although this type of trap is relatively inexpensive, it is dangerous to use in places where there are small children and pets because it is so open and exposed. It is also very repulsive and unsightly when a mouse or rat is caught and killed in it. Another problem is that the open access available from all sides enables the bait to be approached from behind or otherwise inside the sweep of the bail wire and for smaller mice to take the bait without being caught or killed. Although there are other types of traps, some of which catch rather than kill the small animal, there is always the problem of removing the mouse or rat from the trap if it is to be used again or throwing the whole trap away. In every instance there is the problem of disposal before decomposition and resulting odors occur.
While there are also poisons and dehydrating tidbits used to entice, catch and kill mice, rats and the like, these are dangerous to have around and cause a dying mouse or rat to crawl into an inaccessable place with the same decomposition and odor problem.
A mouse or rodent trap which solves many of the above problems is shown in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,992,803 to Kaiser which is hereby incorporated by reference. The inventor in the above-noted patent is one of the co-inventors of the invention of the subject application. The present application discloses a mousetrap that is an improvement over the mousetrap shown in the above-noted patent. The present application discloses structural features which substantially reduce the cost of building the subject mousetrap and also provide a better mousetrap. The cost is reduced by simplifying the structure of the mousetrap and also the assembly thereof.
A further improvement over the mousetrap of the cited patent is the provision of a tripping member which cooperates with a catching member, a bail wire, and a back wall member to cause a set trap to be triggered without the rat having contacted the bait.
Several prior patents disclose a triggering or tripping mechanism which do not form part of the catching member. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,218,406 to Jackson discloses a trigger platform hinged to the rear wall compartment above the point at which a jaw member is hinged. Likewise, British Pat. No. 179,305 discloses a tilting platform adapted to be actuated by an animal entering the trap whereby a previously set spring jaw is released in front to a trapping position.
Other mousetraps generally of the type to which this invention relates are disclosed by the U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,099,021 of Landes and 2,684,553 of Schroeder.